JamHeronArk wrote:

They work for me, even in an incognito browser. Here are the addresses; maybe these will work.
https://www.google.com/maps/d/drive?state=%7B%22ids%22%3A%5B%221g3Sc04HsLeGLNRaq8PcqNb028HT-ZffA%22%5D%2C%22action%22%3A%22open%22%2C%22userId%22%3A%22117809671670956373114%22%7D&usp=sharing
https://www.google.com/maps/d/drive?state=%7B%22ids%22%3A%5B%221RYtoDlnqbfcbimoqHKWDSE-PA2Mw5PAn%22%5D%2C%22action%22%3A%22open%22%2C%22userId%22%3A%22117809671670956373114%22%7D&usp=sharing
I am using Google Chrome, maybe browser has an impact?

I use Google Chrome as well...for me, it only shows up on an incognito browser.

Last edited by Burmy87 (5/09/2020 1:04 pm)

JamHeronArk wrote:

Burmy87 wrote:

JamHeronArk wrote:

I've put together the map of AltFL teams and my map of projected team fanbases.
These will be updated once the last group of team names are announced.

FAQ for fanbase map.
Q: What's the science behind this?
A: There is no science, just my applied Midwestern knowledge.
Q: Why does [X] have [Y]? Shouldn't [Z] have that?
A: This map is entirely my opinion. Each owner could make a map and have 32 completely different maps.
Q: What's the deal with Toronto?
A: They're Canadian in an American football league. My map only covers the 48 contiguous states, and Buffalo is right across the border. They don't get much.

I tried clicking both links, and they say "404 Error."

They work for me, even in an incognito browser. Here are the addresses; maybe these will work.
https://www.google.com/maps/d/drive?state=%7B%22ids%22%3A%5B%221g3Sc04HsLeGLNRaq8PcqNb028HT-ZffA%22%5D%2C%22action%22%3A%22open%22%2C%22userId%22%3A%22117809671670956373114%22%7D&usp=sharing
https://www.google.com/maps/d/drive?state=%7B%22ids%22%3A%5B%221RYtoDlnqbfcbimoqHKWDSE-PA2Mw5PAn%22%5D%2C%22action%22%3A%22open%22%2C%22userId%22%3A%22117809671670956373114%22%7D&usp=sharing
I am using Google Chrome, maybe browser has an impact?

I had no issues using both those links, personally.

Stickman wrote:

MyTeamIsDr.Pepper wrote:

QCS wrote:

I think I've come to a realization: my names tend to do less well, in part, at least, because they're deeper cuts and aren't immediately obvious. So when people see something like "Los Angeles Links" and haven't read my explanation (or don't want to come through the forum again, totally understandable) they don't make the connection to the Internet or don't understand the connection. Not saying it would've won, but hey, the only name I have so far is Emperors and that's about as easy as it gets for New York.

 
Honestly, me personally, I vote for traditional names, I don't frankly care about how Links connects to LA, I don't think it's the best name either way. It's too out there and not sports enough if you know what I mean. There's a balance between traditional sports names such as Tigers and Bulldogs and those far out ones like Links and such.

Yeah, I'm with Dr. Pepper on this topic.  I tend to vote for more traditional names that could realistically be used in real sports leagues.  I know this is a fictional league and we're free to make up whatever we want (hence the LA Titans having a rotating field to share with 4 other leagues, even though that will never happen in real life), but I do like some sense of realism myself, at least for the team identities.   

Links, to me, just doesn't work quite as well for a sports team name, especially when you consider how many other really good names each of these teams have for us to vote from.  I think that's another thing you should keep in mind, we're chosing from a list of 15-25 names per team, there's a lot of competition there!  So it's not like you not winning means your selections stink or anything, it's just a sign of how great this community is at coming up with usable sports team identities to where no matter what wins, we're getting really cool teams out of this.  At least you got Emperors in though!  It may have been an easy pick, but it works great for a sports team!

I understand and Links was just the example I could think of off the top of my head. It's a general theme for me, with names that aren't immediately obvious, like Milwaukee Schooners or Charlotte Firebirds. I think when we have the opportunity to create teams completely from scratch we have the rare chance to create something completely local every time and by going with things like "Tigers" or "Bulldogs" we're kind of wasting our chance. It's not me thinking my names are bad (of course I have a favorable opinion of my own ideas) but I think my strategy for coming up with unique names doesn't work as well in this format where the names are presented without context. 

Right now, we tend to lean on generalizations and surface-level research for cities, and this isn't just related to Charlotte. Birmingham Vulcans was a team that already existed, Carolina Reapers means nothing to someone from Charlotte (as well as already used for an AltHL minor league team), Chicago Cyclones is a "Windy City" name, Dallas Bandits is a stereotypical "Western" theme, Kentucky Stallions is a Kentucky Derby-style name, New York Emperors is a basic Empire State name, Arizona Scorpions is a basic desert name, most of the suggestions for San Diego are military-themed, San Antonio (including myself) fell victim to Western-style names, obviously the names haven't been decided but I think overall it leans on stereotypes and names that are obvious at first glance. While there's something to be said for those kinds of names, I think it would be nice if at least some of them were names that really mean something to those communities. 

Please don't interpret this as an attack on anyone or their names. I more want to analyze how we tend to nominate and vote, and I think it's worth thinking about what the names mean and if the connection is more than surface-level. I believe this occurs because everyone here is from all over the country (and the world), and so we each really only have a grasp on what our own community is like and we simply can't make those connections for other places. I'm not saying I should be the be all, end all of team names nor am I saying I'm some expert on every part of the world, I'm only saying what I believe to be true and what I've seen from this process as well as the AltHL's. I can say with certainty I'm not really interested in the Reapers because of their name and I'd imagine at least a couple other participants here feel the same way about their local community that got a name they dislike. All I'm saying is it pays off to do your research and I think when a local talks about their community it's worth listening. I'm not the only one that's discussed this at length. JamHeronArk discussed at length Minnesota's culture, Thehealthiestscratch talked about Arizona and Phoenix, and newcomer Osgiliath Guard spoke about Toronto. My point is that it seems like consistently locals have expressed their opinions about how the city/state should represented and it seems like the community as a whole tends to go for more surface-level names and themes. Again, don't think of this as trying to be insulting or derogatory, but I do think that we could do with a little more listening to locals and a little less stereotyping and "easy" names.

EDIT: I started typing this up before Gritty posted the final names. My point stands.

Last edited by QCS (5/09/2020 2:06 pm)

DireBear wrote:

​Pretty good looking group we have here! Now it's time for me to hone my graphic design skills so my logos actually look decent compared to the rest of the group...

To (hopefully) clear up confusion/mix-up with Dallas, for San Antonio I was envisioning something along the lines of a cowboy theme to contrast with the Bandits (like outlaws v. law-bringers & etc.), or even a ghost cowboy for more style. Hopefully the two designs won't be too similar.

If you need somebody to help you with ideas, I'm your guy...just say the word and I can DM over some possible ideas.

I've got a few ideas and I'd love to collab with a designer on this!